Police link big drug bust to shootings

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 19/10/2016 (3653 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Police say they seized more than $250,000 worth of illicit drugs, including crystal meth, during a series of raids in the Brandon area made as part of a seven-month multi-agency investigation.

While he didn’t specify how, but Brandon Police Service Deputy Chief Randy Lewis said there is a link between arrests made in connection with the investigation and recent gun violence in Brandon.

“We believe… that the recent shooting incidents in Brandon are linked to those arrested and we hope that this will quell the gun violence in the city of Brandon,” Lewis said during a press conference held in Winnipeg on Wednesday morning.

Three men have been arrested in connection with the operation, and Lewis said he sees the arrests and seizures as a “significant” blow to the Western Manitoba drug trade.

“It is certainly a very positive move in our battle against drugs,” Lewis said.

“Project Derringer” was led by the Manitoba Integrated Organized Crime Task Force.

Lewis said the investigation involved an interprovincial investigation into the cross-border movement of illicit drugs into the Westman area.

The Brandon Sun previously learned that the operation involved an investigation into the large-scale movement of illicit drugs from the Toronto region to the Brandon area.

Nine search warrants were executed at three residences — including a farm near Griswold on Thursday, a First Street home on Friday (although police didn’t specify that that was one of the three homes.) A hotel room was also searched.

One of the arrestees is from Ontario, and as part of the investigation his home was also raided, although details weren’t provided on that.

Police didn’t specify where the drugs were found but they seized more than three kilograms of cocaine, 1.5 kilograms of marijuana, and one kilogram of methamphetamine. They have a street value of more than $250,000.

Nine guns were seized — that included a handgun, a semi-automatic “assault-style” rifle — and a crossbow and ammunition for the guns.

Several vehicles believed to have been used to transport drugs were seized, and $25,000 cash.

The arrests were made with the help of tactical teams from both the Brandon Police Service and RCMP.

The three accused remain in custody at this time. Lewis said further charges are pending against the men.

He said there may be further charges against those men, and against others in Brandon and across the province.

While the joint organized crime task force was involved, Lewis said there are no apparent ties to any specific street gangs. 

The investigation into the shootings continues, and police will do firearms testing in an attempt to link the drug case.

During questioning by journalists, Lewis repeated a position previously stated by the BPS — that the Brandon shootings were targetted at specific people and homes.

“The general public — unless you are involved in the gun and drug subculture — you have little to worry about,” Lewis said.

Leslie Gerald Bisson, 36, of Griswold and Justin Tyler Reimer, 28, of Brandon are charged with drug trafficking and weapon related offences.

Javed Ali, 29, of Georgetown, Ont. faces six charges related to drug trafficking.

The allegations against them haven’t been proven and they’re presumed innocent.

Last weeks raids came shortly after a series of four shootings in Brandon in which one woman was grazed by a shot from a shotgun, another man survived being shot in the torso and two homes were fired on.

There was also a home invasion, in which it appears the victims were targetted by mistake.

Police made several arrests in each of those incidents, except for the most recent shooting in which a vacant Russell Street home was shot.

» ihitchen@brandonsun.com

» Twitter: @IanHitchen